sensitive topic – obsesity & fertility for males?

I appologize if any of this comes across offensive that is not my wish at all – I just wanted to see if anyone is in a similar boat as me. I know that there are studies linked to obesity affecting a females fertility. I am wondering if there are any studies about a males obesity affecting his sperm count/morphology etc.

My husband is a bigger guy and im about 25-30 pounds overweight. We have been TTC for 6 months ( I know not as long as some bees, but still each month that goes by it gets me more sad) I am trying to decide how to talk to my husband about what factors may be playing into why we arent pregnant yet.

Does anyone have an overweight DH and didnt have a problem conceiving?

Again… I am sorry if this is offensive… I love my husband to death and have never said anything about his weight… so I do not know how to approach this with him.

being overweight and trying to conceive is a bigger deal with women than it is with men. it’s very common to have trouble conceiving if you’re an overeweight woman. it also skyrockets your chances at gestional diabetes, pre eclampsia, miscarriage and stillbirth. i suggest going to you doctor, but he’s probably going to tell you that you need to lose weight before trying to conceive so that you can be at a healthy weight while pregnant

@anonymous678: Here’s a study that specifically addresses the issue and indicates that obesity does affect male fertility. A simple (and usually cheap) semen analysis would anwer this question for you and you don’t really need to couch it in terms of him being overweight. You can say that it’s been 6 months and getting a semen analysis is one of the least invasive assessments to start with.

According to recent research, there is definitely an impact obesity has on male fertility.

“In the last 5–10 y it has been demonstrated that maternal obesity is associated with changes to the oocyte that negatively impact embryo development, which reduces subsequent pregnancy establishment after in vitro fertilization. Only recently in the last 2–3 y has the impact of an obese male partner on embryo development and pregnancy been assessed. Currently, there is mounting evidence that male obesity may be equally implicated in reducing fertility and embryo health. Couples with an overweight or obese male partner, with a female of normal body mass index (BMI), have increased odds ratio for increased time to conceive compared with couples with normal weight male partners.” – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3521747/

“Fertility doctors yesterday advised obese men to lose weight if they want to start a family, after research linked a dramatic fall in sperm quality to rising body weight.

Being overweight can definitely be a factor. Fats release estrogens into the body which cause serious hormonal imbalances in men & women.

You might want to consider that nutrition is critical in male fertility. If a man is not getting enough of certain vitamins & minerals (zinc, selenium, etc), sperm quality can be HUGELY impacted. Often individuals who are overweight are also malnourished because of their dietary choices.

My DH is overweight too but we didn’t have trouble conceiving. I had read an article about how eating walnuts can help improve sperm quality in men so he ate a handful of those often while we were TTC. He also eats healthy choices most of the time so I do not think he is malnourished at all. Here’s the article I was referring to: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/249191.php It certainly doesn’t hurt to try along with beginning with a sperm analysis. The good news in the article is even if the first sperm analysis isn’t great, in many of the men in the study it was able to be improved fairly easily.

@anonymous678: My suggestion to you is to work on yourself. You need to be in the best shape you can be and healthy when you concieve. You may find that the problem is actually on your end. Male fertility is a sensitive subject. Can you imagine how the convo will go if you are not only suggesting it is your husband who is holding up the process but that your reason for thinking so is that he is fat?

I would definitley see my ob/gyn and see what they suggest but they will likely tell you to lose weight and get in shape. If you are doing this, it may motivate your man to join in and support you. Since the end result my be the baby you have been hoping for. Good luck!

If you are having regular periods, it’s unlikely that your weight is interfering with your ability to conceive, OP. If you DO have an irregular menstrual cycle, maybe it is.

I’m classed as ‘slightly’ obese and I have not had any problems with my cycle…even when I was far heavier. I also know women my size who have long since stopped having regular periods. Depends on the person and their body, I guess.

Like others are saying, excess fat can mean more estrogen in the body, which can affect fertility. But without testing, I’d say there’s no way to say for sure.

My husband is overweight and his SA results have been perfect. We are going through fertility treatments but the problem is definitely on my end. Like others have said, obesity can be an issue with men, and can create a hormonal imbalance. Also, dietary fat has shown to be an issue in some men with morphology issues.

I would see if your doctor (or his) will order an SA for you. It will at least give you peace of mind. I know I felt better once we knew that DH did not have an issue, because at least we had something going for us. Good luck!

thank you everyone for your replies! I do want to clarify one thing. In no way am I insinuating his weight would be the only factor. I know that I am slightly overweight and could loose a good 25 lbs. I have regular periods and no issues with my period. I know that losing weight would be helpful to have a healthy pregnancy, but I dont know if its interferring with my fertility if that makes any sense.

I am going to try and see if I can go to the doctor and get a physical and talk to him about ordering an SA for my husband. We see the same doctor so maybe thats possible.

Sometimes it’s just an issue of making sure ‘the boys’ are cool enough–if he’s carrying weight down there and it’s crowding around his business, it’s possible that his body heat could be affecting his sperm count–testicles are designed to dangle away from the rest of the body because they need to be at a slightly cooler temperature for sperm to flourish.